A Muslim man was brutally murdered on Friday morning inside the mosque of La Grand-Combe in the Gard region of southeastern France, after an anti-Islam French attacker stabbed him approximately 50 times, according to police reports.
The French newspaper Le Figaro revealed that investigators found a chilling video recorded by the assailant himself during the crime, in which he hurled vile insults at the Muslim victim and blasphemed against God using obscene language.
Cameras Capture the Crime
The assailant was reportedly unaware of the mosque’s surveillance cameras filming him until later in the attack. Upon realising he was being recorded, he shouted, “I will definitely get caught,” before fleeing the scene. As of Saturday evening, the killer remained at large, prompting fears he could commit further crimes.
After identifying the perpetrator, authorities placed his brother in custody for questioning. It was confirmed that the attacker holds French nationality but is of Bosnian descent and is not Muslim.
The victim, aged between 23 and 24 years old, was found only when worshippers began arriving for the Friday prayers. Reports indicate the young man had come to France from Mali a few years ago and was well-known and beloved by the local community, frequenting the mosque daily.
Possible Anti-Islamic Terror Motive
Public Prosecutor Abdelkarim Grini stated that authorities are “studying all possibilities, including the hypothesis of an anti-Islamic hate crime.” He added that France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office is currently reviewing the case to determine whether it will formally take over the investigation — a move usually reserved for major acts of terror.
The local community has been left shaken by the heinous act, described as both a personal tragedy and a targeted attack against Muslims worshipping peacefully.
Widespread Condemnation
The crime has sparked outrage across France. Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin described it on Saturday as a “heinous murder” that constitutes “a stab at the heart of all believers, and all Muslims in France.” He pledged full confidence in the justice system to capture and prosecute the murderer.
Meanwhile, Gabriel Attal, Secretary General of the ruling Renaissance party, denounced the act as a manifestation of “hatred against Muslims” and “racism,” affirming that such scourges “have no place in France and will not be tolerated.”
Michael Delafosse, Socialist Mayor of Montpellier, declared that “the Republic cannot accept that our Muslim citizens live under a climate of fear,” condemning what he called “a vile act driven by racism and intolerance.”
Similarly, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the left-wing France Unbowed (La France Insoumise) party, asserted: “Islamophobia kills, and everyone who fuels it is guilty.”
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